A Milwaukee woman, who claimed she was legally entitled to kill a man due to being sexually trafficked by him, was sentenced to 11 years in prison on Monday after pleading guilty to a reduced charge of reckless homicide.
Kenosha County Judge sentenced Chrystul Kizer to 11 years of initial confinement followed by 5 years of extended supervision for the 2018 death of Randall Volar, 34. She was credited with 570 days of time served, roughly one and a half years.
Kizer was not granted eligibility for early release programs by the Department of Corrections, and is expected to be released in 2033, according to the Wisconsin State Public Defender’s office.
In May, Kizer pleaded guilty to second-degree reckless homicide in Volar’s death, which allowed her to avoid a trial and the possibility of a life sentence.
Prosecutors stated that Kizer, who was 17 at the time, shot Volar at his Kenosha home in 2018. She then set fire to his house and stole his BMW. Kizer faced several charges, including first-degree intentional homicide, arson, car theft, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
At 24 years old, Kizer reported meeting Volar on a sex trafficking website, where he had been molesting and exploiting her as a prostitute for the year leading up to his death. She told detectives that she shot him after he attempted to assault her.
Kizer’s defense argued that under a 2008 state law, sex trafficking victims are exempt from criminal liability for offenses committed as a direct result of being trafficked. Similar laws have been enacted in many states over the past decade, offering some level of immunity to trafficking victims.
Prosecutors countered that Wisconsin legislators could not have intended for these protections to cover homicide. Anti-violence advocates supported Kizer, arguing that trafficking victims often feel trapped and might resort to extreme measures. The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled in 2022 that Kizer could present this defense during the trial.
APN